


Tengu's Day Off

by GooeyHeat



Category: Touhou Project
Genre: Established Relationship, F/F, Gen, Hot Springs & Onsen, aya i swear to shit, kutaka doesn't show up but she's talked about, two annoying-ass birds and one tired-ass wolf
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:40:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24144523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GooeyHeat/pseuds/GooeyHeat
Summary: Momiji drags her friends to a hot spring.
Relationships: Himekaidou Hatate/Shameimaru Aya, Inubashiri Momiji/Niwatari Kutaka
Comments: 7
Kudos: 32





	Tengu's Day Off

"RRRR... AH!"

As the morning sun crested over Youkai Mountain, Momiji Inubashiri let out a grunt as she lifted a heavy barbell above her head. Despite the still-cool air, sweat dripped down her broad shoulders and back as she came to the end of her last rep. She stood up from her bench and stretched her muscular arms above her head one more time, letting the slight morning breeze cool her off after her exertion.

With her workout finished, Momiji's next step in her morning routine was to take a shower. As usual, she stepped into her house, took off her workout clothes, and stepped into the running shower. Normally, Momiji's showers were quick and utilitarian, but today she let the warm water run over her slightly sore body for longer than usual, breathing in the steam and feeling the warmth on her tough muscles. She took this extra time for the same reason that, after leaving the shower and getting dressed, she didn't pick up the sword and shield that were required of her as a guard of Youkai Mountain.

After all, today was Momiji Inubashiri's day off.

Once she was dressed in her usual outfit, Momiji picked up a yellow slip of paper. She examined it, making sure one last time that the information on it was correct. The paper was a pass, allowing access to a town in Former Hell known for its hot springs. For a long time, Former Hell was off-limits to the tengu, but after a conflict involving the Hakurei shrine maiden and the Palace of the Earth Spirits, the restrictions had been relaxed to an extent, and visitors would occasionally pass to and from the underground... with official permission, of course.

Satisfied, Momiji tucked her pass into a skirt pocket. She then picked up two more passes and slipped them into the same pocket before stepping out of her front door.

After all, she wasn't taking this day trip alone.

After a short flight, Momiji landed in front of another tengu house. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door forcefully. "Oi, Aya! Get your ass out here!" she growled.

"Come in~" a sing-song voice replied, clearly not responding to the request. Momiji rolled her eyes and opened the door.

Inside, she found Aya Shameimaru sitting at a desk, working at lightning speed. She moved between typing, scrawling notes, arranging photos, and flipping through her notepad at an impressive pace. She almost felt bad for interrupting such a process.

Almost.

Momiji walked right up next to Aya. "Today's my day off, remember? We're going on a little trip. Come on."

Aya turned towards her. "Oh, right! That! Well, as much as I would absolutely love to spend time with you, I have a very important story coming together, so I'm afraid I will have to decline. See you later, Momiji- HEY!"

Aya's exclamation arose as Momiji picked her up and slung her over her shoulder with a single motion.

"I swear we do this every month, Aya. Let's just pretend we had the usual argument and skip to the part where your annoying ass comes with me."

Aya kicked her legs and flailed her arms, which Momiji did not react to in the slightest. "Put me down, you big brute!"

"Nah, I know what happens when I do. It's okay; I'll let you walk on your own once we reach the underground. I'm sure you'll be happy to run around on your own down there."

"Eep!" Aya chirped. "W-well... you..."

"Come on, Hatate will be happy to see you anyway. Stop whining."

Momiji stepped out of Aya's house and flew off, Aya's continued protests echoing through the air.

Hatate Himekaidou's house was a bit more out of the way than Aya's, but the flight was still made without incident. At this point, Aya had tired herself out slightly and had been reduced to simply pouting as Momiji carried her like a sack of potatoes.

She knocked on Hatate's door, with considerably less force than she had Aya's previously.

"Just a sec, I'm coming!" Hatate's voice called out. After a short wait, she opened the door and looked up at Momiji. "Why are you carrying my girlfriend like a sack of potatoes?" she asked.

"Because this MONSTER would DARE to obstruct the FLOW OF INFORMATION! She'd let society fall to its KNEES!" Aya yelled.

"Today's our trip to the underground hot springs, remember?" Momiji said, ignoring Aya's rant.

"Oh, right! Lemme just close some stuff up, I'll be out in a minute!" Hatate responded.

"Alright."

"Oh, you let HER finish what she's working on, but you unceremoniously kidnap me from my own home?" Aya grumbled.

"Yup," said Momiji.

"That's not fair in the slightest!" Aya protested.

"Sure isn't," Momiji said, clearly not interested in dragging things out with Aya.

"Alright, I'm ready!" Hatate said, stepping outside.

"Good. Follow me," Momiji answered, turning around and launching herself into the sky.

Hatate flew just behind her. "Hey there, Aya~" she said, winking, as with Momiji turned around Aya was now facing Hatate.

"I can't believe that you're not outraged at my treatment," Aya grumbled.

"I dunno, I think it's pretty cute~" Hatate said sweetly. She flew forward a bit and gave Aya a quick kiss.

"Yeah, well..." Aya pouted, but went quiet. The three continued to fly in silence as they dove downwards into the large cave that served as the entrance to Former Hell.

After entering the cavern (and giving the earth spider and tsurube-otoshi that hang around the entrance a wide berth), the trio reached the bridge into the metropolitan areas of Former Hell. Momiji put down Aya and let her walk, partially because Aya wasn't likely to run off on her own through the underground, and partially because Momiji just didn't feel like carrying her anymore. Almost immediately, they were approached by the bridge princess that guarded the road.

"Oh? Tengu? What might you be doing here?" Parsee asked with a sneer.

Momiji held up her passes. "Just here to visit the hot springs."

Parsee peered up at the papers in Momiji's hand. "Well, that's just fine then. Have a wonderful time!" she spat, turning around and walking away with a grimace.

Momiji watched her go before starting to cross the bridge. "I feel bad for her," she remarked.

"Eh, I hear she's doing alright these days," Hatate answered. "Rumor has it that that oni that runs the hot springs dotes on her."

"Ooh, now THAT sounds like a story!" Aya chimed in.

"NO," Momiji and Hatate said in unison.

The rest of the walk passed without incident, and so the three tengu found themselves at the hot springs.

Momiji stepped in front of the other two. "Well, we're here. The showers are over there, so- Oh crap."

"Huh? What's wrong- Oh crap," Aya said, following her gaze.

"What's going on?" Hatate asked.

An absolutely massive oni walked up to them. She had a single horn in the center of her head, and she was carrying a dish of sake in one hand.

"Oh! Tengu! Well, I'm sorry to say but we really can't take any interviews right now. Rest assured, though, that the water in these particular springs is clean as can be, and, uh..."

Momiji raised a hand. "You misunderstand. We're just here to visit the springs." She handed her passes to the oni.

The oni sighed. "Ah, my mistake! Very well then. I'm Yuugi Hoshiguma, and I run this place. You need anything, let me know, okay?"

As Yuugi walked away, shaking the ground slightly with her steps, Aya and Momiji let out a breath that they didn't even know they were holding. "Glad that went okay," Momiji sighed.

"I don't get it. What's the big deal?" Hatate asked.

"How do you not know about Yuugi Hoshiguma? One of the Big Four of the Mountain, one of the strongest oni to ever live, and one of the former rulers of the mountain? I knew you were a shut-in, but I thought you'd at least be up on your history," Aya said.

Hatate rolled her eyes. "I know who she is, but, like, what's the big deal? So she used to boss around the tengu. So she's real strong. We know plenty of strong people. Why cower in fear of this one just because she used to be our boss?"

Aya patted Hatate's shoulder condescendingly. "You'll get it when you're older, dear," she said.

Hatate smirked. "I'm not even that much younger than you. I'm just way more stylish," she said, giving her hair a little flip.

"Oh my god just get in the shower before I throw you guys in there myself," Momiji said, exaggerating her exasperation.

One shower later, the trio sunk themselves up to their neck in the steamy water.

"Ah, this feels great. Aren't you two glad I thought of it?" Aya said with a smile.

Momiji just rolled her eyes and let the steam soothe her muscles. As much as she knew she needed this, she didn't realize quite how tense she was until the warm water started relaxing her body. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, entering a slight trance that was interrupted by the voices of her companions.

"Hey, Aya~"

"What is it, Hatate?"

"Y'want me to massage your shoulders?"

"Oh, yeah, that sounds great."

Momiji looked on, bemused, as Hatate maneuvered herself behind Aya and began rubbing her shoulders.

"Mm, yeah this is great, Hatate..."

"Of course it is~" Hatate smiled.

Aya closed her eyes and leaned back into Hatate for a little bit. After a few moments, she opened her eyes back up and noticed Momiji watching them. A mischievous smile formed on her face. "Hey, no need to look like a lost puppy. If you want one, all you have to do is ask~"

"Lay a hand on me and you can expect to lose it within five seconds, crow," Momiji growled.

"Ah, Momiji, you threaten me so much, and yet all these years later, I still have all my limbs. If I didn't know better, I'd almost think you actually liked me."

Momiji smiled. "Good thing you know better, then."

"Oh, Aya, Momiji definitely won't let either of us massage her," Hatate piped up. "She'd only accept that sort of thing from Niwatari, y'know?" At the sound of this name, Momiji jumped.

Aya's eyes lit up. "Oh, right, the chicken god! How are things going with her, Momiji, hmm?"

"Sh-shut up!" Momiji yelled, face red. "H-how'd you hear about that?"

"Well, sometimes when I'm out early, I see you guys chatting before she heads off to work. A journalist is always good at observation, and I can tell from my observation that you've got it bad, girl."

Momiji buried her face in her hands. "Ugh, this is so embarrassing..."

Aya smiled. "Cheer up, pup. From the way she talks to you, she's definitely into you too."

"Yeah, right. I'm sure she's just being polite," Momiji grumbled.

"I would agree with you, except that she never seems to bother chatting that long with any of the other wolf guards in the mornings... Ah, who knows why though?" Aya said with a wink.

Momiji sighed. "Look, I get you're trying to be nice, but come on. She's a god, and I'm just a normal-ass tengu."

Aya scoffed. "Oh please. She works in Higan for the yama. You know they don't care about that stuff down there."

"Yeah, come on. Impartiality is, like, their entire thing," Hatate chimed in.

"Even so... what would she even see in me?" Momiji said, looking down.

"Jeez, Momiji, I've never seen you this down on yourself. Where's that confidence you have whenever you tell Aya to eat shit?" When Momiji didn't respond, Hatate continued. "Seriously, Momiji, you're a loyal friend with a big heart. You're always there for the people you care about. Any girl would be lucky to have you."

Aya smiled brightly. "For sure. Plus, have you seen those boobs of hers? Fucking _incredible_."

"SHUT IT," Momiji growled, but it was clear she was trying to hold back a laugh.

"Oh man, if we're going there, then, like, her abs, though? To die for, omigosh," Hatate added.

"One more comment about my body and I'm drowning both of you!" Momiji yelled with a smile, clearly fully cheered up by her friends.

An hour or two later, the three tengu were at one of the many bars of the underground city. Momiji sat at the bar by herself; Aya and Hatate had moved to one of the tables to chat with some of the oni. The bartender walked up towards Momiji, polishing a glass. "Hey, wolf. Need another drink?" she asked.

"Just water's good. I need to take these two idiots home tonight," Momiji replied, pointing a thumb towards her crow companions.

"Designated flier, huh? I gotcha."

After getting her water, Momiji turned towards the table where Aya and Hatate sat. She watched them laughing and drinking and leaning on each other and smiled. She thought back to the conversation they'd had at the hot springs, and the laughs and crazy times they'd had. _As much as a pain in the ass as they can be... I wouldn't trade these two crows for the world,_ she said to her self.

Her introspection was interrupted by Aya waving at her excitedly (and drunkenly) from her table. "Hey, Momiji! Come over here for a second!"

Momiji got up and walked over to the table. Aya pulled an empty chair out from under the table. "Sit down, sit down!"

"Hey, Aya. What do you need?" Momiji said.

Aya turned towards one of the oni sitting across from her. "Yeah, this is her! My friend with the awesome tits I was telling you about!" she said with a bright smile.

In one smooth motion, Momiji grabbed Aya by the shirt collar, picked her up, and threw her across the room. She crashed into a wall and slid down. "I deserved that," she mumbled loudly as she reached the ground.

"Ya sure did!" Hatate yelled.

Momiji sighed with a smile. _Yup. Wouldn't trade them for the world._

**Author's Note:**

> Touhou 17 omake.txt: Kutaka works in Higan but she actually lives on Youkai Mountain  
> me: It's Free Ship Estate


End file.
